Courses and seminars at  General Linguistics focus on theoretical models of language and the comparative analysis of linguistic structures. Following a long tradition of studies in general linguistics, the current research presented in the courses concerns both invariance and the general properties of human language, as well as the possible variation between languages. Emphasis will be placed both on the nature of the universal principles governing the structure of language, and on the mechanisms responsible for variation, with particular reference to parametric models. The central core of the course will be devoted to the analysis of syntactic structures, complex objects which it is important to map in as much detail as possible. While the articulation of structures can reach a considerable level of complexity, the fundamental generating mechanisms are, according to some current models, of great simplicity. In parallel, the lectures will address the basic ingredients of syntactic computation postulated by minimalism, the results of mapping projects, and the questions and new directions that these lines of research open up. The study of language acquisition can inform the analysis of linguistic structures, and at the same time be decisively inspired by the theory and description of adult grammar. Language development in children will therefore be another central theme of the teaching activities associated with the Chair.

These courses draw on the latest research developments in all the areas mentioned : syntax theory and comparative syntax, parametric models of variation, structure mapping, combinatorial mechanisms and locality effects. All these themes are addressed in the research linked to the General Linguistics Chair, from the point of view of adult language systems, as well as from the perspective of language acquisition.